IO 2016: Google announces Assistant, hopes to outsmart Siri & Cortana

While in terms of usability, the Assistant is going to be more or less
similar to Google Now, it does bring with it a kind pf personality that
will help the company take on Apple's Siri and Microsoft's Cortana.

advertisement

Javed Anwer

New Delhi

May 19, 2016

UPDATED: May 19, 2016 09:03 IST

Apple has Siri. Microsoft has Cortana. And Google has Now. But which one of these three is the odd one out. All three of them are smart virtual assistant but Google Now, unlike the other two, doesn't converse. It won't tell you jokes. Google is fixing this situation with Assistant, a new virtual helper that will not only tell you the timings of your flight but will also probably share a couple of jokes with you.

"The Assistant is conversational -- an ongoing two-way dialogue between you and Google that understands your world and helps you get things done," Google CEO Sundar Pichai said.

While in terms of usability, the Assistant is going to be more or less similar to Google Now, it does bring with it a kind pf personality that will help the company take on Apple's Siri and Microsoft's Cortana. Both Siri and Cortana have these interesting personalities that often manifest in how they interact with users. The Google Now in comparison is dry and boring.

Google says that the Assistant uses the company's powerful machine learning and AI tools to deliver seamless experience. "The Assistant is an ambient experience that will work seamlessly across devices and contexts. So you can summon Google's help no matter where you are or what the context. It builds on all our years of investment in deeply understanding users' questions," said Pichai.

For now, the Assistant will also power two new Google products - Home and messaging apps Allo & Duo. "Google Home is a voice-activated product that brings the Google Assistant to any room in your house," said Pichai. Meanwhile, the Allo and Duo will use the Assistant to come up with predictive replies. In the chat app Allo, the Assistant will also act like a chatbot and will help dig information for users.

"Because the Assistant understands your world, you can ask for things like your agenda for the day or photos from your last trip. If you're planning a dinner with friends, you can ask the Assistant to suggest restaurants nearby, all in one thread," said Pichai.